Tool box



June 23, 1925.

H. B. WHITAKER 1 Filed April 30, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet l gw venfoz if. 3 wui'axwr.

June 23, 1925. 1,542,927 H. B. WHITAKER TOOL Box Fil ed April 30, 1924 2 Sheep's-Sheet til Patented June 23, 1925.

UNITED STATES HOBER'I B. WHITAKER, O F NORTON, VIRGINIA.

IIOQL BOX.

Application filed April 30, 1924. Serial No. 710,078.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HoBnR'r B. WHITAKER, citizen of the United States, residing at Norton, in the county of'VVise and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tool Boxes, of which the following is a specification,

This invention relates to an improved carpenters tool box and seeks, among other objects,'to provide. adevice which, may be compactly folded for storage orshipnient.

The invention seeks, as a further object,

to provide a box having a center partition embodying a handle and wherein the several hinged walls of the box may be folded to lie against each other in parallel relation to the partition at opposite sides thereof.

And the invention seeks, as a still further object, to provide a tool box which will be strong and durable and which will serve all of the purpose of conventional devices of this kind.

Other and incidental objects will appear hereinafter.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved tool box,

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the device,

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view on the line 3-8 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows,

Figur 4; is a perspective view showing the box folded, and

Figure 5 is a sectional view on theline 55 of Figure 4, looking in the direction of the arrows.

In carrying the invention into effect, I form the bottom wall of my improved tool box of three complemental sections comprising a relatively narrow section 10 and somewhat wider side sections 11, which latter are identical. As shown in the drawings, the box is preferably oblong inshape and may be formed of wood or other suitable material. Connecting the side sections with the center section are hinges 12 at the inside of the box and upstanding from the center section is a medially disposed center partition 13 rising above the sidewalls of the'box and apertured to provide a handle 14:. The center partition is secured to the section 10- of the bottom wall by angle plates 15 or other suitable means and terminates flush with the ends of said section. Swing ingly mounted upon the side sections 11 at their outer longitudinal edges are side walls 16 connected with said sections by hinges 17 and swingingly mounted upon each end of the center partition 13 at opposite sides thereof is a pair of end wall sections 18. The end :wall sections 18 are all alike and are connected withthe center partition by hinges 19. Mounted upon the upper edges of said sections at their outer ends are spring catchesv 20' apertured to engage over studs 21 upstanding from theupper edges of the side walls 16. Thus, the spring catches will serve to rigidly hold the side and end walls in proper relative position so that, as will be seen, a tool box havingtwo compartments is produced. The side sections 11 of the bottom wall will, of course, abut the side edges of the section 10 and will thus be limited to lie flush with the center section while the lower edges of the side walls 16 will abut the upper faces of the side sections 11 of the bottom wall and will thus be limited in vertical position. Similarly, the inner vertical edges of the sections 18 of the end walls will abut the side faces of the center partition 13 so that these sections will be limited in position extending at a right angle to the center partition. Accordingly, since the spring catches- 20 will hold the side walls 16 to abut the outer vertical edges of the sections 18 of the end walls, a thoroughly rigid structure is provided.

Attention is now directed to the fact that by springing the free ends of the catches upwardly over the studs 21, the sections 18 of the end walls may be freed from the side walls 16 of the box. The box may then be folded, as shown in Figures 4 and 5 of the drawings, by swinging the end wall sections 18 inwardly to extend at opposite sides of the center partition 13, the lower edges of said sections being notched, as particularly shown in Figure 1, to pass over the Having thus described the invention,

what I claim is:

1. In a tool box, the combination of a bottom wall comprising a center section and side sections hinged to the center section, side walls hinged to the side sections of the bottom wall and foldable downwardly thereagainst, a center partition f xed to the center section of the bottom wall, and end wall sections hinged to said partition at opposite sides thereof and connected to said side walls closing the box at its ends andv forming separate rigid braces for said side walls, the end wall sections being foldable inwardly to lie along the sides of said partition and the side sections of the bottom wall with the folded side walls being foicla-ble upwandagainst, a partition lined to the center section of the bottom wall, end wall sections hinged to the partition at opposite sides thereof closing the box at its ends, studs carried by the side walls, and spring catches carried by the end wall sections and apertured to engage over said studs connecting the side walls with said end wall sections whereby the end wall sections provide separate rigid braces for the side walls, the end wall sections being foldable inwardly to lie along the sides of said partitions and the side sections of the bottom wall with the folded side walls being foldable upwardly to overlie said end wall sections.

In testimony whereof I afi'ix my signature.

HOBERT B. WHITAKER. t 8.] 

